


Parent-Teacher Conferences

by marsroverVEVO



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Viktor is Yuri's dad, Viktor trying to be a good dad and Yuuri trying to be a good teacher, Yuri is in kindergarten with Otabek, Yuuri and Phichit are best friends too, Yuuri is Yuri's art teacher, it's fluff, parent teacher conferences, that's honestly it, they are best friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-23
Updated: 2017-02-12
Packaged: 2018-09-19 12:23:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9440303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marsroverVEVO/pseuds/marsroverVEVO
Summary: Yuri goes to lunch with Mr. Katsuki and Mr. Chulanont. What happens next will warm your heart.





	1. Viktor Just Wants To Be a Good Dad

Viktor Nikiforov sat in the principal’s office, bouncing his knee impatiently. As a kid, he was never sent to the principal’s office; however, these days, he found himself there on almost a weekly basis. It was the same thing every week and it went a little something like this:

His day had begun like many other mornings- too god damn early. His alarm went off before the sun was up, screaming at him to start his day. Robotically, he showered, brushed his teeth, got dressed, and made coffee. A cup and a half later, the sun began to peak it’s head over the horizon and shine directly into his eyes. By the time he got sick of the glare, it was time to wake up Yuri.

He padded up the wooden stairs, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand. He stretched his hands above his head, groaning along with his joints. Opening the door, he sat on the edge of Yuri’s bed. He looked so calm when he slept. There were no furrowed brows or exaggerated pouts. He gently carded his fingers through Yuri’s hair, softly speaking to him.

“Good morning, Yuri. It’s time for you to get up now,”.

Yuri’s mouth instinctively screwed into a pout as he yanked the covers over his head. 

“I don’t wanna go. I hate school,”.

“I know, honey, I know. But today will be fun! We’re going to the zoo after school,” Viktor muffled a yawn into the collar of his shirt. Yuri just groaned, pulling the covers tighter around him. Viktor sighed, rubbing his back through the comforter. Now Yuri was a sweet kid, but like every other 5 year old, he was a handful.

“I’ll pick out some clothes and start breakfast, okay?”. 

He stood up and walked over to the dresser at the foot of the bed. He rummaged through the drawers, picking out some clothes he knew that Yuri would agree to wear. He laid them at the foot of the bed. He tugged down the sheets, revealing a scowling mess of tangled blonde hair. Viktor smiled fondly.

“It’s going to be a good day, I promise,” he pressed a kiss to Yuri’s forehead. He made his way back downstairs, fighting every urge to crawl back in bed with Yuri and sleep the day away. He started some oatmeal in a pot on the stove while he cut up an apple. From upstairs he could hear the opening and closing of drawers, thankfully Yuri hadn’t gone back to sleep. Viktor hummed as he added the apples to the oatmeal along with raisins. Eventually, Yuri joined him in the kitchen. Viktor lifted him onto a stool, sliding a bowl of oatmeal towards him.

“Papa?” Yuri asked, poking the porridge with a spoon.

“Yes, Yuri?”, Viktor replied, looking up from his cup of coffee.

“Why are we having fancy oatmeal today? I thought it was only for special days,”.

“If you have a good morning, you can have an even better day. I wanted to make today super good so you can have a super good day at school,”.

Yuri nodded in agreement. School wasn’t the easiest for him. He was a much quieter and smarter kid than the others so they didn’t always get along. They also didn’t like playing with him since he could be so competitive. As much as teachers tried to encourage the other students to be inclusive, he was always picked last. Viktor was often called at work to come pick up Yuri because he was having such a hard time at school. Every time that his phone rang, it broke Viktor’s heart.

After breakfast was finished, Yuri hopped down from the stool and went back upstairs to brush his teeth. Viktor began to make his lunch, pulling out the extra special fruit snacks and juice boxes. Today had to be a good day for Yuri, he had already had what could easily be called a terrible week. He scribbled a small note in Russian and placed it at the very bottom. It was like their secret code. Something that always meant it was going to be okay. Yuri came running back downstairs, clutching his little stuffed tiger.

“Papa, can I bring Hobbes with me today?”.

Viktor paused, tapping a finger on his chin, “Did you brush your teeth?”

“Yes,”.

“For two whole minutes?”.

“Yes, Papa,”.

“And did you brush your hair?”.

“Yes, Papa. Look! No tangles,” Yuri ran a hand through his hair.

“Well, since you’ve been so good, I suppose so,”.

“Yay!” Yuri grinned. He sat down on the floor, unzipping his backpack. He stuck Hobbes in the main pocket, letting his head stick out as he zipped it up. He put on his shoes, tightening the velcro. Viktor sat beside him, lacing up his shoes.

“Papa, when am I going to get big kid shoes like you?”.

Viktor laughed, ruffling Yuri’s hair. 

“Maybe for your birthday. I didn’t know that you were ready to try big kid shoes,”.

Yuri stood up with a stern expression on his face, “Papa, I’m almost six. I’m ready for big kid shoes now,”.

Viktor laughed again, “Since when did you get to be so big?”.  
___

Now fast forward a few hours and that brings us back to the principal’s office. In a small plastic chair, Viktor’s knees were up in his armpits. He was waiting for the inevitable, ‘I’m sorry, Mr. Nikiforov, he’s just having a very bad day. We’ll have to try to find a better solution,’. The door opened and Viktor looked up. The principal walked in, holding Yuri’s hand. Today was different though, Yuri didn’t look upset or sad, he looked excited. He sat down beside Viktor, swinging his legs back and forth with a huge grin on his face. Viktor looked up at the principal with a look of confusion and relief.

“Mr. Nikiforov, now I know that we only ever call you in when Yuri’s had a bad day, but today is something different. Yuri, do you want to tell him what happened?”.

“Papa! Today instead of going to recess, Mr. Chulanont let me go to the art room and Mr. Katsuki and I painted the whole time! It was really fun and he’s super duper nice! Plus he didn’t make fun of me when I told him about Hobbes and stuff,”.

“Oh Yuri-” Viktor threw an arm around Yuri’s shoulders, “That’s wonderful!”.

“Now Mr. Nikiforov, I think herein lies our solution. While we can’t totally alienate Yuri from his classmates, what we can do is let him go to the art room for a few weeks and then he can decide if he’d like to invite any other students to go with him. It’d allow him to integrate at his own pace and let people into his comfort zone,”.

“That sounds like a plan worth trying,” Viktor grinned, he ruffled Yuri’s hair.

“Alright, now I’d like to have you meet with Yuuri Katsuki, our art teacher. He’ll be waiting for you in his room. Yuri, do you think that you could take your dad down to meet him?”.

Yuri vigorously nodded, taking Viktor’s hand. He pulled Viktor out of the room before he could say his thanks, towing him down the hallway. He stopped in front of a brightly decorated door, only dropping Viktor’s hand to knock on it.

“Come on in,” a voice called from inside. Yuri stood on his tip toes and pushed on the handle, opening the door. He grabbed Viktor’s hand to lead him inside. Yuuri stood up at his desk, smiling at Viktor. Based off of first impressions, Viktor was stunned. He had never expected the elementary school art teacher to be so good looking. But not just really good looking- hot. 

“You must be Yurio’s dad,” he held out his hand. It snapped Viktor out of his trance, a blush rising to his cheeks. Viktor tugged his hand from Yuri’s grasp to shake his hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, thank you for being such a big help,”.

Yuuri smiled, “Oh it’s nothing. Your son’s a really good kid. Not to mention as smart as a whip,”.

Viktor smiled. Yuuri handed Yuri a handful crayons and paper before taking a seat at his desk, motioning for Viktor to take a seat as well.

“Hey Papa- guess what!” Yuri tugged on Viktor’s elbow as he sat down.

“What is it?” Viktor leaned down in his seat to be at eye level.

“Well I have two things to say. First he calls me Yurio because we have the same name! And- and- guess what else?”.

“What else,”.

“He’s from Japan! He moved here just like us!”.

Viktor smiled, “Super duper cool,”.

Yuuri was blushing, trying to hide the color behind his glasses. How come the sweetest kids always had the hot parents.

“So uh-” Yuuri began awkwardly, “I’m sure Principal Baranovskaya explained to you the gist of the plan, but would you like me to go more in depth?”.

Viktor smiled and nodded.

“A-Alright so the plan is to let Yuri come in here and hang out with me during recess. This allows him to take a break from other students and express his feelings simultaneously. Our time together would be a productive emotional and creative outlet,”.

Viktor nodded again.

“Then after some time, we can see if he’d like to invite some other students to come hang out with him. If he makes the move first, it can help him feel more comfortable because he’s welcoming people into his space rather than the other way around,”.

“Do you think this will help him with social aspects? Being alone that is,” Viktor mused, cocking his head to the side.

Yuuri nodded, “I think right now, there’s a lot of interactions going on, so many that they make Yurio uncomfortable and make him shut down emotionally. I think if we give him some alone time and work up to the constant interaction, it’ll help with his social skills and emotional development,”.

“Well, you seem like a wonderful teacher and Yuri loves you so I’m willing to give it a go,”.

“What about you, Yurio? Do you wanna give it a go?”.

Yuri looked up from his drawing, “Yes please! I like hanging out with Mr. Katsuki,”.

Yuuri looked back to Viktor, “Sounds good to me. Please feel free to contact me if any other questions arise, okay?”.

Viktor stood up, shaking Yuuri’s hand with both of his, “Thank you so much, Mr. Katsuki. I don’t think anyone has been so willing to help me or my son,”.

Yuuri blushed violently, “Please, call me Yuuri and it’s my pleasure. I don’t think anyone should be left behind,”.

___

Yuri sat in front of the tiger exhibit, eating his ice cream as he watched the big cats nap in the afternoon sun. Viktor stood beside him, absentmindedly carding through Yuri’s hair. His mind wandered back to the meeting. Most teachers just brushed off Yuri as a problem student who just needed to get out and play more, but Mr. Katsuki wanted to try to opposite. He recognized that Yuri was overwhelmed by the constant presence of kids, so rather than pressuring him to get out more, he proposed more alone time. Viktor would be forever grateful if this all ended up working out.


	2. Lunch with Mr. K and Mr. C

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri goes to lunch with Mr. Katsuki and Mr. Chulanont. What happens next will warm your heart.

Yuri lined up at the door. His hands were gripped tightly around his lunch box handle. They were too loud and too excited and too much for him to handle. He stared at the ground, digging the toe of his sneaker into the tile. He just wanted to go to Mr. Katsuki’s room already. There it was nice and quiet- no one was yelling or running around. It was just him and Mr. Katsuki, and sometimes Mr. Chulanont. The bell rang and the kids all took off for the cafeteria in a cloud of dust. Yuri closed his eyes tight until all the noisy kids were gone. Mr. Chulanont smiled, holding out his hand.

“Is it okay if I join you and Mr. Katsuki today?”.

Yuri smiled, taking his hand, “Only if you color with me today,”.

Phichit smiled, tapping a finger to his chin, “I suppose I could do with some coloring today,”.

They walked down the hall, Yuri struggling to keep up with Mr. Chulanont’s long strides. He couldn’t wait until he was a big kid and didn’t have to run to catch up. He stopped in front of Mr. Katsuki’s room, knocking on the door. Even though Mr. Katsuki said that he didn’t have to knock every time, Papa had said it was impolite not to knock. 

“Come on in, Yurio,” Yuri called from inside, placing some art on the big drying rack.

He opened the door, immediately making his way over to the table right next to the window. He set his lunch box on the table, climbing up onto the tall stool. Mr. Chulanont sat across from him, putting his lunch box up as well.

“So, are we eating first and then drawing? Or eating while drawing? What’s the plan, Stan?”.

Yuri scrunched up his nose, “I’m not Stan, I’m Yuri,”.

From across the room, Yuuri’s laugh barked out. Phichit covered his mouth, stifling his own laugh. Yuri gave them a weird look and then shrugged. ‘Man adults are weird,’ he thought to himself.

“I eat and then I draw, otherwise my drawings get food on them, and that’s gross,”.

Phichit nodded with a serious look on his face, “Oh but of course, we couldn’t get our art dirty now, could we?”.

“Absolutely not, Mr. Chulanont,” Yuuri nodded in agreement, sitting beside Phichit. Yuri unzipped his lunch box, methodically setting out all of his food. Across the table, Phichit opened his thermos, steam billowing out from the still fresh food. Yuuri sniffed the air, groaning.

“That smells amazing- what is it?”.

“I think it’s japchae,” Phichit decided, inspecting his dish with a fork. He shrugged, “I don’t really know, it’s whatever Seung-Gil made for me this morning,”.

“What’s that?” Yuri was confused and intrigued.

“It’s noodles with beef and other vegetables. It’s from Korea and it’s super yummy,”.

Yuri nodded, opening his juice box. Japchae was a weird name for a food, but he figured that it must be like Mr. Chulanont’s version of pirozhkis. Other kids teased him when Papa made pirozhkis for lunch, but it’s just because they didn’t know they were delicious. ‘I shouldn’t tease him just because his food sounds funny,’ Yuri furrowed his brow, nodding to himself.

“Whatcha thinkin’ about there, Yurio?” Yuuri asked around a bite of his sandwich.

“I was just thinking that japchae is a weird name for noodles, but other kids think that pirozhkis are weird even though they’re really yummy. So I bet japchae is pretty yummy too, I just haven’t tried it yet so I won’t make Mr. C feel bad about it,”.

Phichit grinned, giving him a thumbs up, “That’s a really good attitude to have. I always say to try a bite of everything. So much food looks weird but tastes really really good! You just don’t know until you give it a go!”.

Yuri giggled at the rhyme. Mr. Chulanont was a really funny teacher. 

“Is that how you make friends?” Yuri wondered out loud.

Yuuri nodded, “Sometimes people will want to play games you’ve never heard of, but you won’t know it’s fun until you try playing it. People will also be very different from you, but you won’t know that you’re best friends until you try talking to them,”.

“I hope I have a best friend someday,”.

“Don’t worry, Yurio. There’s plenty of time to make new friends,”.

The conversation topic changed to some adult thing that Yuri didn’t really understand so he went back to eating his carrots and watching the creek outside the window. There was a family of three ducks sitting on the edge. There were two big ducks and one little duckling. Yuri sighed at the sight. Most families had two parents and a kid, but he just had Papa. Not that he didn’t love him with all of his heart, but he didn’t like seeing his dad so alone. He was lonely and Yuri wanted to fix it but he didn’t know how. Papa never told him much about his life before he brought him over to America, but he knew a few things. He knew that his mom couldn’t keep him safe so she sent him to live with her brother in America. He knew that her brother was Papa, but he also knew that being a single parent was hard. It was like teaching yourself to ride a bike. Learning alone was scary and hard. Papa tried to put on a happy face every time he saw Yuri, but he could see how tired he was. He would have to bring home work a lot and sometimes he wouldn’t even get to sleep at night. All Yuri wanted to do was help, but he was only five and turning six wouldn’t help him very much. 

“Mr. Katsuki?” Yuri asked, peeling his orange. He was an adult so he must have some answers.

“What’s up?”.

“Are you married?”.

Yuuri looked up from his lunch, holding out his left hand, “Nope, not yet,”.

“Isn’t it sad to be alone though? Like I have Papa, but he doesn’t have anyone else special,”.

“Wow Yurio, you know just what to say,” Yuuri chuckled, “But what about you? Aren’t you his special person?”.

Yuri shook his head, “I am, but I mean a different kind of special. I meant he doesn’t have the kind of someone you’re in love with. He loves me, but he’s not in love with me,”. Yuri stuck out his tongue, making a disgusted noise, “That would be icky,”.

Yuuri smiled, “I understand what you’re saying now. I think falling in love can be scary because that’s one person you’re with for the rest of your life. You don’t want to make the wrong decision,”.

“But don’t you know automatically? Isn’t there love at first sight?”.

“Sometimes. Other times, you don’t know you’re in love until you see how much you miss them. I wish love was more black and white,”.

“Why isn’t it?”.

“Because everyone has emotions and we don’t always understand other people’s emotions and we accidentally hurt the people that we love the most,”.

Yuri nodded, “That happened to me one time?”.

Phichit raised an eyebrow, “Oh?”. Who the hell was breaking this five year old’s heart, or rather, whose heart was this five year old breaking?

“Well sometimes I get angry and say things that I don’t really mean. They hurt Papa’s feelings pretty badly and sometimes he cries, and then I cry. It’s not fun and I feel really sorry,”.

Yuuri smiled, this kid was wise beyond his years. Understanding the subtleties of love and what it means to be kind? Most kids barely understood the rules for Connect Four, and all of the instructions were in the title. 

“Yeah, that happens sometimes. It’s important though that we apologize instead of only feeling sorry for ourselves. It may be hard to say I’m sorry, but sometimes it’s what you have to do,”.

“Like getting a flu shot,” Phichit piped up, “It hurts for a second, but it helped keep you and your dad from getting sick,”.

Yuuri nudged Phichit with his elbow, “I’m sure love is exactly like a flu shot, Phichit,”.

____

Yuri sat on the benches outside, waiting for his dad’s little red car to pick him up. Other kids laughed and played on the playground, but Yuri just hugged his backpack tight to his chest. He wanted to go and play with the other kids, so badly. But he just couldn’t. 

Behind him, the school doors opened and a boy walked out in bright yellow rain boots. His hands were gripped tight around his backpack straps, looking around for his parents anxiously. Yuri looked over from his spot on the bench. The look on the other boys face was familiar, it was one of being left alone in a foreign place with people that didn’t like you. Nerves bubbled up into Yuri’s throat as a thought occurred to him. He had to say hello. The words first fell from his lips silently, not a single sound formed. He then took a deep breath and looked over at the boy.

“Hello,” he spoke up, hands shaking. The boy turned and looked at him with wide eyes. This was it, he was going to get yelled at again. Yuri braced himself for impact, but the boy merely waved back at him with a slight smile. His heart soared at the polite motion.

“Would you like to sit with me?” Yuri scooted over, patting the bench beside him. The boy made his way over, taking off his backpack to sit beside Yuri. 

“My name’s Otabek, what’s yours?” he said quietly, looking down at his shoes.

“I’m Yuri,”.

They then sat in silence for a long while. It wasn’t scary like when other kids teased him and he sat alone on the swings. This silence was nice and soft. Like when you wake up on a Saturday morning to watch cartoons. 

“Um, I like your rain boots a lot. I like the color yellow,” Yuri mumbled shyly. 

Otabek grinned, quickly looking away. He covered his mouth, forcing his lips into a scowl.

“Wait- did you already lose your front teeth?” Yuri sat facing him in awe. Otabek slowly lowered his hand, smiling. There was a big gap between his front teeth.

“Woah!” Yuri exclaimed, “You must be a big kid if you already started losing your teeth!”.

Otabek’s grin spread wider, no longer afraid to flaunt his gap-toothed grin. 

“I’m gonna be six soon and I’m gonna have a super cool party at the pet store!”.

Yuri was amazed. This kid shows up with super cool rain boots, some of his teeth missing, and now he’s having a birthday party at the pet store? Yuri was head over heels for his new best friend. 

The second that Viktor pulled up to the school, he nearly started crying. There was his son, sitting on a bench- with the only other kid around- talking. But more importantly, smiling. Viktor watched their conversation, his breath catching in his throat as Yuri pulled out Hobbes, but the kid beside him simply laughed and pulled out a stuffed bear. Alarms were going off in his brain, ‘Yuri made a friend. Don’t panic, but Yuri actually made a friend’. Trying to regain his composure, Viktor wiped his eyes on the hem of his shirt and took a deep breath. His son just made a friend, don’t make it weird. He took another deep breath and got out of the car. Yuri spotted him immediately, waving at him.

“Papa, come here!” he cried out.

Viktor walked over and smiled, “What’s up chicken butt?”.

Yuri giggled and so did his friend.

“Papa, this is Otabek. Can we have a play date sometime?”.

Viktor nodded vigorously, tears welling in his eyes again, “Of course, sweet pea. Of course,”.

Yuri grinned, making Hobbes wave goodbye to Otabek, “Goodbye Bek! I’ll see you tomorrow!”.

Otabek made his bear wave back as Viktor buckled Yuri into his car seat, “See you later, alligator!”.

Viktor closed the door between them and Yuri immediately rolled down the window, calling out as Viktor pulled away, “In a while, crocodile!”.

Yuri bounced in his seat, hugging Hobbes close. He was really excited about his new friend.


	3. Oh No! He's Hot and a Good Dad (an epiphany)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri and Phichit are very happy to welcome Otabek into their little lunch group. Yuri is also very excited to turn six.

The last yellow school bus pulled away as Yuuri knocked on Phichit’s door. From inside, he could hear the familiar squeak of the hamster wheel. He knocked again before entering. Phichit wasn’t at his desk, he was at the window, lost in his thoughts.

“Hey, Phichit-” before the last word could even leave his lips, Phichit whipped around and dragged him over to where he stood. His hand covered Yuuri’s mouth as he pointed.

“Don’t say anything, just watch them,”.

Yuuri’s eyes followed his point out to the bench under the flag pole. Yurio appeared to be playing with Hobbes, which was normal. What wasn’t normal was the fact that he was playing with another little boy who had a stuffed bear. 

“Phichit- I’m gonna cry this is too cute,” Yuuri whined, pressing a hand to the glass.

“Oh I know. He’s a new student in my class and I knew right away that they were gonna be like two peas in a pod,”.

The two of them watched Viktor pull up. The distance made it hard to see, but it almost looked like Viktor was crying from happiness. He jumped out of the car and opened a door for Yuri. He waved at the other boy with a blinding grin. He squatted down to be level with Yuri as he talked animatedly. Neither Phichit or Yuuri had ever seen the kid look so happy, or the his dad for that matter. Yuri continued to talk to Otabek from his car seat as Viktor buckled him in. Watching the whole scene unfold was like watching the sappiest, lovey-doviest, most cavity inducing Hallmark movie. After watching Viktor drive away, Yuuri nearly collapsed onto Phichit’s desk.

“Phichit, you gotta help me,” Yuuri groaned.

Phichit sat down at his computer and swiveled around in his chair, tucking his pen behind his ear.

“Are you okay?”.

“Noooo,” Yuuri’s head hung low.

“Ooo, I think I know what this is about, can I guess?”.

Yuuri nodded, looking up.

“So I send Yurio to hang out with you and it goes well. Too well. So well, in fact, that Mr. Nikiforov thinks he’s somehow indebted to you and constantly emails you with his thanks. Which is all fine and good, except he’s hot,”.

Yuuri nodded furiously, vaguely gesturing at Phichit.

“That’s it- that’s exactly it! It’s awful! How can I stay objective when his kid is adorable and so is he?!”.

“Hang on- I know, but I’m not done. Then you see little Yurio making a friend and Mr. Hot Dad gets emotional because he’s not just good looking, he’s also a good parent,”.

Yuuri sighed, hanging his head.

Phichit laughed, “You should ask him on a date at parent teacher conferences,”.

Yuuri cocked his head, “Isn’t he married?”.

“Nope. Mr. Nikiforov adopted Yurio from his sister in Russia when she passed away suddenly. And if I remember our conversation from our meetings right, he’s here for journalism,”.

Yuuri nodded as he listened. Pausing before he spoke, bit his lip and looked down at his lap, “Phichit, even if I did, there’s no way that he’d say yes. I mean look at me. I’m covered in acrylic paint and marker all the time. There’s no way that a hot foreign journalist would say yes to a damn elementary school art teacher,”.

Phichit rolled his eyes, “You forget that you’re a total catch. A cute guy who loves working with kids and is the world’s biggest sweetheart?”.

“That’s easy for you to say. You’re super biased,”.

“Maybe, but I sure as hell know you stand a chance,”.

_____

The next day, Yuri walked up to Mr. Chulanont with a beaming grin. He proudly announced that he wanted to take the new student (and his new friend), Otabek, to art with him. Two double high fives later and they were all in the art room drawing away.

“I’m so glad you brought Otabek, Yurio. Art is more fun when you can bring friends with,”.

Yurio nodded, reaching across the table for the crayons.

“That’s why I’m here,” Phichit grinned.

“You guys are friends?” Otabek looked up from his paper.  
“Sure thing,” Yuuri smiled, “We’ve known each other a really long time. We met when we were fourteen. We were both in ice skating together and had the same coach,”.

Phichit chuckled, “God I miss Celestino. Our coach was totally crazy, but he helped us through a lot of hard times. He always was there for us,”.

“Kinda like how you’re here for me, Mr. K,” Yuri nonchalantly spoke, not even looking up from his coloring.

Yuuri was speechless. He couldn’t believe that he had made such an impact already. Phichit looked at him with hearts in his eyes. The fact that he felt so comfortable to say that spoke volumes of the importance of their lunches in the art room. 

“It’s just like that,” Yuuri grinned through his teary eyes.

A few weeks went by and Yuri and Otabek were as thick as thieves. They worked hard in class and played even harder outside of it. Sitting on their bench outside, they had their binders full of Pokemon cards laid out. For once, Phichit had to scold them for talking during nap time, rather than having to encourage either of them to participate. They always seemed to push their sleeping mats together or hide away in a corner during reading time. One day Yuri and Otabek couldn’t stop whispering in class. All through lunch they whispered too. Yuuri raised an eyebrow at Phichit, questioning their behavior. Before either of them could ask, school was over and Yuri asked to talk to both of his teachers and Otabek.

“Mr. C and Mr. K?” he asked, swinging his legs back and forth. 

“What’s up?” they both asked at the same time, laughing at their synchronicity.

Yuri reached into his backpack. He placed three envelopes on the table, their names scrawled on the paper in red crayon.

“These are for you,”.

Otabek kneeled on a chair to grab the envelope. Yuuri and Phichit picked up theirs as well. They all opened up their envelopes, pulling out hand made cards. 

Otabek looked up at Phichit, “Mr. Chulanont, I can’t read this. What does it say?”.

Phichit grinned, giving Yuuri’s shoulder a slight shove, “It looks an awful lot like Yurio wants us to come to his birthday party,”.

Otabek grinned, hugging Yuri tight, “I’m gonna come! It’s gonna be super duper fun!”.

Yuri grinned, “It’s gonna be a jungle party at my house! Papa even said you can sleep over if your mom says yes!”.

Phichit elbowed Yuuri again, snapping his gaze from the writing on the inside.

“This is your chance to make a really good impression, Mr. Katsuki,”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a short chapter this week! This week I got pretty sick and have been living in a weird fever-y state! I can't wait to get back into the swing of things once I get better <3 Thank you for all of the super wonderful feed back and comments!


	4. Happy Birthday, Yurio!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri and Phichit go to Yuri's birthday party. Christophe is a sly fox and Yuuri gets embarrassed. But the rest of the day goes very well. Ending with two kindergarteners sound asleep on their art teacher while the Aristocats plays in the background.

Phichit knocked on the door of Yuuri’s apartment loudly. He called out to him through the door in frustration.

“Look- I know you’re nervous about today but don’t take it out on Yurio’s birthday! Come on!”.

Just as he was about to resume his flurry of fists on the door, it swung open. Yuuri had picked out his nicest t-shirt and jeans (aka the only ones that weren’t covered in paint). He clutched a package in his hands, nervously fiddling with the ribbons it was wrapped in. He was visibly nervous for the day ahead. Phichit threw an arm around Yuuri’s shoulders.

“It’ll be okay! Even if you blow it with Viktor, you won’t blow it with Yurio. That kid loves you to death,” he took the box from Yuuri’s hands, shaking it beside his ear, “What’d you even get the kid anyways? This is pretty heavy,”.

Yuuri snatched it back, ducking out from under Phichit’s grip, “None of your business. Besides, I’m not even nervous,”.

Phichit leaned in close, poking at his fingers, “Your poor cuticles say otherwise. You need some bandaids,”.

“That’s not because I’m nervous. It’s because I can’t wrap presents and this wrapping paper was sharp…” Yuuri lied, his stomach tied in knots. 

He had spent the better part of last night at the art store, trying to come up with the perfect gift for Yurio. He had to find something that he’d like, that was within his budget, and didn’t scream “I’m desperate for you and your hot dad’s approval”. All requirements considered, it was much easier said than done. He stood in front of a wall of markers, chewing his nails down to nubs. He picked up a package of nice markers, his eyes scanning the label but his brain off in it’s own little world. Scenario after scenario flew through his mind as he thought about all of the wrongs that could happen. He could say something wrong- do something worse- he could ruin the party. Snapping out of his trance, Yuuri viciously shook his head, why was he so worried about potentially ruining a kid’s birthday. All he had to do is show up, eat cake, give him a present, and then go home. Yuuri took a deep breath, finally deciding on a pack of markers and a coloring book. He stood in the checkout line reading the titles of tabloids as the line inched forward. His eyes caught on a small keychain as he stepped forward. There were two small cats interlocked by their tails, ‘best’ and ‘friend’ written on their bellies. It was one of the cheesy charms meant for twelve year old girls who were obsessed with their best friends, but Yuuri thought it was perfect. It would be a perfect gift to celebrate his new friend, Otabek. He set it on the counter along with his other purchases, suddenly very much looking forward to the party. 

The next afternoon, however, the feeling was different. Only an hour away from the party, he stood in front of his closet, wrapped in his bathrobe. What does someone wear to a birthday party when you want to look hot but also sensible? The question wasn’t rhetorical in the slightest. Yuuri had no clue. All of his clothes were incredibly bland. Various shades of grays and navy stared out at him from his hangers. 

“So much for looking nicer,” he muttered, tugging on a black, long sleeved shirt and khakis. It’d have to do considering that his other options were the same outfit in either three different shades of gray or cobalt blue. He sat on the couch, turning on the TV in hopes to distract himself from his own thoughts. He had barely begun to zone out when all of a sudden, there was a knock on the door. He groaned, burying his head in his hands. The knocking continued as he summoned the energy, or rather courage to actually get up. He knew it was Phichit and he knew it was time to go. And that brings us up to date. Yuuri sat passenger side in Phichit’s car. His knee bouncing up and down, rattling the contents of Phichit’s box. 

“What the hell did you even get the kid? A box of marbles?” Yuuri frowned as the rattling continued to emanate from the box.

“It’s none of your business,” Phichit stuck out his tongue, using Yuuri’s own words against him.

“Touche,” Yuuri sighed.

“Hey, are you really that nervous about today?”.

“Yeah. I just don’t know how this is gonna go and I really don’t wanna mess anything up before I even have a chance to make a good first impression, y’know?”.

Phichit nodded, pulling up to the curb, “Well, it looks like you’re gonna have to just give it a go. Just promise to be yourself?”.

Yuuri slightly smiled, looking up at the house, “Alright. Well we’d better go in, right?”.

Phichit grinned, “That’s the attitude,”.

They walked up the front walk, careful not to smudge the chalk drawings that directed them to the door. Yuuri rang the doorbell once, stepping back. Phichit immediately stepped in front of him, slamming his palm against the doorbell repeatedly. 

“Phichit- What are you doing!?” Yuuri asked, mortified. The door opened before Phichit had the opportunity to answer (or Yuuri had the opportunity to hit him). 

“Papa! Papa! Mr. C and Mr. K are here!” Yuri called back into the noise of conversation and music. He pushed open the screen door, letting them in.

“Happy birthday, Yurio!” Yuuri crouched down wrapping him in a hug. Yuri laughed, putting a headband on Yuuri, knocking his glasses askew. Yuuri pulled away, one hand fixing his glasses and the other feeling around for whatever was just put on his head.

“Now we match!” Yuri grinned proudly, pointing to the ears on his head, “I’m a cheetah and you’re a clouded leopard! Mr. C is a panther and Papa’s a snowy leopard too!”.

“What about Otabek?” Phichit asked, leaning down so Yuri could put on his ears.

“He said he wanted to be a spectacled bear instead of a cat, but I think he’s actually a tiger,” he stated, standing on his tiptoes to put on Phichit’s headband.

“I’m so glad you two made it!” Viktor grinned, excusing himself from his other conversation, “Yuri couldn’t stop talking about how excited he was to have you two come over. I know inviting teachers to parties may be a little unorthodox, but I’m really glad to have you two here,”.

Yuuri handed Yuri his present from Phichit and stood up, finally getting a good look at Viktor. First of all, that was a mistake. Second of all, there is no scenario in which a grown man should ever look good in cat ears, but somehow Viktor did and it pissed off Yuuri. His face flushed red as he shook Viktor’s hand.

“It’s a pleasure to have been invited,”.

Phichit shook his hand next, “I do agree. And might I say, Mr. Nikiforov, you are looking stunning in those cat ears,”. 

Viktor tossed back his head in laughter. Yuuri sharply elbowed Phichit as he grinned. Yuri lead Phichit to the kitchen, leaving Yuuri alone with Viktor in the hall. He anxiously clutched the gift, sharp corners of the box digging into his palms.

“Thank you for coming, Mr. Katsuki. I never thought that I’d see my son so happy. Or myself for that matter,” he smiled, resting a hand on Yuuri’s shoulder. Yuuri blushed, studying his socks. 

“Please call me Yuuri, Mr. Katsuki is my dad,” Yuuri mumbled.

“Okay, Yuuri, Why don’t I introduce you to everyone else,” Viktor kept his hand on Yuuri’s shoulder, leading him to the dining room. The heat radiating from Viktor’s hand was palpable through his thin shirt. Yuuri’s heart threatened to beat out of his chest when he felt a gentle squeeze. Viktor was trying to encourage him.

“Yuuri, this is Christophe and Sara and Georgi. Everyone, this is Yuuri, Yurio’s art teacher” Viktor gestured to the people sitting around the table, they all waved back at Yuuri, “I’m assuming you met Phichit before the boys stole him away, but Phichit and Yuuri are the honest-to-god angels I’ve told you about,”.

Yuuri uncomfortably laughed, gripping the box tighter, “Oh no- it’s all Phichit, really. I just supply the crayons,”.

Christophe leaned forward onto his elbows, looking over the top of his glasses, “I dunno Yuuri, Viktor and Yuri both seem to like you an awful lot. Maybe even more than Phichit, but hey- I can see why,” he shot an approving look at Viktor, “Viktor really has impeccable taste,”.

Yuuri was startled by the comment. He couldn’t possibly think that Viktor was interested in him. Hell, he didn’t even know if the guy was gay. Based on Chris’ comment, he could guess but that was most likely a long shot. 

Viktor laughed, “What can I say, I’m a sucker for nice guys who are creative and are good with kids,”.

Yuuri’s face flushed tomato red. Okay, so all signs are pointing to Viktor liking him but what the fuck. Why the hell would he like him? He stared at the box in his hands, eyes boring a hole through the shiny, foil, wrapping paper.

“Guys, I think you broke him,” Georgi leaned forward, dipping his head to look at his face. He tugged the box from his hands, causing him to look up.

“I’m sorry about Chris and Viktor, they just don’t know when to quit. Do you want me to show you where the drinks are?”.

Yuuri nodded wordlessly, following him to the kitchen. He leaned against the cupboard, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead to see if he was really as hot as he felt. His heart was pounding in his ears as thoughts flew through his head.

“Just breathe,” Georgi spoke, pressing a can of soda into his hands. Yuuri relished the cold metal that began to slow his racing heart.

“Are you okay?”. 

Yuuri shrugged, cracking open the soda and chugging a third. The carbonation burned in his nose but he didn’t let it show. The sensation tugged his thoughts further away from whatever that conversation was.

“They’re a little intense, but you’ll get used to them. If you ever need me to come bail you out today, just give me a holler, okay? I know how ‘much’ this can be,”.

Yuuri nodded again, taking a smaller sip this time, “Do you know where Yurio’s room is? I should probably say hi to him and Bek,”.

Georgi grinned, “God those nicknames are never gonna be lived down. They should be upstairs and the first door on the right. If not, you can probably just listen for them,”.

Yuuri nodded, quietly thanking Georgi as he left to go upstairs. He ducked through the living room where a loud conversation had taken hold. Sara had tried to stop him and get him to join in but he just muttered something about finding the birthday boy and kept walking. He padded up the stairs, knocking on the closed door. 

“What’s the password?” Phichit cracked open the door, Yuri and Otabek trying to peek through the sliver.

“Mmm,” Yuuri tapped his chin in thought, “Phichit rules and Yuuri drools,”.

Phichit crouched down, pulling Otabek and Yuri into a huddle.

“What do you think guys? Can we let him in?”.

“Yes. But we get to face paint him too,”.

Otabek nodded, “I agree,”.

“Alright, let him in,”. 

Yuri opened the door, quickly pulling him in by his shirt sleeve. He indicated for him to sit on the floor amongst his many stuffed animals. Otabek sat beside him, holding out some crayons. Phichit sat across from him with Yuri in his lap. He was cross-eyed trying to stare at the whiskers drawn on his cheeks.

“Alright, Mr. K. After quite a bit of deliberation, you can be admitted into our Cat Club, but there’s one condition,”.

“And what might that be,” Yuuri held back a laugh, trying his best to uphold the serious tone.

“Yurio gets to draw on your whiskers. I mean what kind of cat are you if you don’t have whiskers?”.

“That’s a good point, Mr. C. Go for it Yurio,”.

Yuri stood up beside him, tipping his head up so he had a better view. He held out his hand and Otabek quickly put a crayon in his palm. 

“Did you know that if a cat’s whiskers can fit through a hole, the cat can fit too?” Yuri said matter-of-factly. He stuck his tongue out a little as he concentrated, first starting with the little triangle on the end of his nose. Yuuri pushed his glasses on top of his head as Yuri started on the whiskers. He wrinkled his nose at the feeling, it was proving to be quite ticklish. Yuri stepped back and crossed his arms, admiring his handiwork.

“Now that’s what I call a clouded leopard,” Phichit grinned taking a picture.

Yuri grinned, high-fiving Otabek, “Best birthday ever!”.

Yuuri fixed his glasses, grinning, “So what’s the plan today?”.

“Well we gotta do cake and presents, but we should watch the Aristocats later! We already played hide and seek and Hi Ho Cherry-o and other stuff, but Papa said we can watch a movie when we’re all tired out,”.

Yuuri nodded, “It sounds like a plan to me,”. 

“So presents?” Phichit asked, standing up.

“Presents!” Yuri grinned.

“Piggy backs too!” Otabek held out his hands and Phichit scooped him up without hesitation. Yuuri picked up Yuri, who immediately wrapped his legs around Yuri’s waist and his arms around his neck. 

“To the living room!” he directed Yuuri forward, one arm extended out in a point.

They carefully made their way downstairs, Yuri and Otabek messing with their respective adults hair.

“Mr. K?”.

“Yes, Yurio?”.

“What shampoo do you use?”.

Yuuri barked out a laugh, stopping halfway down the stairs, “I don’t even know? Dove maybe?”.

Yuri nodded in understanding, “It’s good,”.

“Thanks, Yurio,”.

Otabek buried his nose in Phichit’s hair, “Mr. C? You smell like curry,”. 

Phichit grinned, pinching Otabek’s toes, “Weirdo, don’t push it,”.

They rounded the corner to the dining room, Yuuri ducking under the door frame to avoid bumped foreheads.

“Hey Papa! We should do presents now!” Yuri called out over the conversation, resting his chin on Yuuri’s head.

Viktor turned around and beamed, “Look at you! My little cheetah!”. He leaned forward, placing his hands on Yuuri’s shoulders to press a kiss to Yuri’s cheek. Underneath the affection, Yuuri was dying. His nose was pressed up to Viktor’s chest. They were close enough for Yuuri to smell his faint cologne. He wrapped an arm around Yuuri’s shoulders, pulling Phichit in. 

“Everyone say cheese!”. 

Big grins were plastered instantaneously as cameras flashed.

“You all look wonderful,” Viktor grinned, looking up at Yurio, “now how about some presents and cake?”.

They all piled into the living room, Yuri sitting beside Viktor and Otabek on the couch while Phichit and Yuuri looked on from the floor. He went through presents slowly. Carefully undoing the tape so as not to rip the paper. After each gift, he got up to give out his hugs and thanks.

“What a well mannered kid,” Phichit mouthed to Yuuri as Yuri wrapped his arms around him.

Finally, alone sat Yuuri’s present on the coffee table. Whether it was intentional or not, to be the last gift in a room full of strangers, it was nerve wracking. Yuri picked it up, undoing the ribbon with a flourish. The paper fell aside revealing a Harry Potter coloring book, new markers, and the little charm. Yuri slightly gasped, looking between Yuuri and and the gifts.

“Mr. Katsuki! This is so cool!” he flew across the living room, tackling him in a hug.

Yuuri grinned, rubbing his back, “I’m glad you like it, kiddo. The charm is for you and Otabek so you match,”. 

Yuri settled himself on Yuuri’s lap, “We already have matching shirts. You should keep one and so can me and Papa. We all can be best friends,”.

Yuuri grinned, ruffling Yuri’s hair, “I like that idea,”.

Once presents were done and pictures were taken, the adults went back to the dining room to talk while Yuuri curled up on the couch with Otabek and Yuri and watched the Aristocats. Yuuri laid on his back with Otabek curled up against his side and Yuri sprawled across his chest. The cutest part? They didn’t even make it ten minutes into the movie before they all fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote a ton for this chapter because it's like I kept writing and thinking to myself, "Dude. Adam. Make it cuter", so I did. It's all fluff with Yuuri being a nervous wreck, but I hope you like it! Please let me know what you think!


	5. Happy Birthday Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri wakes up from his nap and is invited to stay for dinner. There are some serious things said, all good though.

Yuuri was gently awoken by a weight stirring on his chest. He opened one of his eyes to see a blurry blonde head of hair pulling a blanket over the two small blurs on his stomach. He reached over to the coffee table, groping around for his glasses. There was no such luck so he reached down to the floor, nothing there either. He sighed, resolving to deal with the issue later. Otabek tossed and turned on Yuuri’s chest, frowning at the discomfort. 

“Yurio, Bek, hang on I’m gonna flip onto my side,” he gently spoke before flipping onto his side. Adjusting to the new position, Otabek and Yuri curled up against Yuuri’s chest. He pulled the blanket back over them, resting his arm across them.

“Hey Mr. K?” Yuri softly spoke, his face pressed under Yuuri’s chin.

“Yes Yurio?”.

“Can you come over more?” a yawn split his sentence in half, “You’re really fun to play with and you’re good with cuddles,”.

Yuuri blushed, pulling the two kids closer, “I’ll hang out as long as your dad will let me,”.

Across the house, there was a knock at the door. There was a quiet conversation with words that Yuuri couldn’t quite make out. Viktor walked into the living room and smiled at the sight before him. He gently kneeled down by the couch, resting his hand on Otabek’s back.

“Hey Bek, your mom’s here to pick you up,” he gently spoke, rubbing his back. Otabek sat up, a strong pout and bed head in full effect. Viktor scooped him up, holding him on his hip, carrying him to the door. Yuuri caught a glimpse out of the corner of his very blurry vision and he was in love. He gently ran a hand through Yuri’s hair.

“Why am I so in love with your dad, Yurio? What did I do to deserve this?” he muttered, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead.

Yuri tightly gripped Yuuri’s shirt, squeezing his eyes tighter shut. He knew he wasn’t supposed to hear that, but it made him very excited. What if Yuuri liked Papa? Was he even allowed to have two dads though? Was that cheating? It’d be super cool to have two dads. It’d be like having two Papa’s which sounded like a lot of fun.

Viktor snuck back into the living room, leaning in the doorway. The sight of the two of them curled up together on the couch made his heart swell. Yuuri had stumbled into their life by circumstance and chose to stick around. He had impacted his family in ways he thought were impossible. For once in his life, his son had a friend and as for himself, he had hope. He slipped his phone out of his pocket, taking a few pictures for memory’s sake. He tiptoed back to the kitchen, grinning at the picture. 

“What’ve you got there, Vik?” Christophe raised an eyebrow, leaning over his shoulder to look at the screen. Viktor began to protest, holding his phone to his chest defensively.

“Nothing- I swear-” he tried to squirm out from under Chris without. Chris deftly plucked his phone from his hands, holding out of his reach. A shout died at Viktor’s lips as he remembered Yuuri napping on the couch. He pouted, crossing his arms as Chris cooed over the pictures.

“You’re in love!”.

The second that the “L-word” was uttered, everyone in the kitchen perked up. Viktor held a finger to his lips, angrily whispering.

“Shut up! They’re still asleep!”.

Christophe clapped a hand to his mouth in feigned surprise. He handed the phone back to Viktor, leading the rest of the party to the living room in a quiet parade. He softly gasped, holding a hand to his heart. Phichit grinned, taking a picture for Yuuri’s sake as well. Viktor pulled them all back into the kitchen, an embarrassed blush dotting his cheeks. Phichit placed an arm around Viktor’s shoulders.

“Don’t worry, Vik. I can hook you up,”.

Viktor blushed even harder, covering his eyes, “You’re not helping, Phichit,”.

“He is pretty cute after all,” Georgi mused, sitting on the counter, “Besides didn’t Yuri hate the last guy you dated?”.

“Well that’s because he instinctively knew that the guy was gonna be a dick,” Sara shrugged, “Kids and dogs can sense that in a person,”.

“That was years ago anyways. Plus lots has changed since then,” Christophe added.

Georgi nodded in agreement. 

“It’s not like that anyways. Sure Yuuri is cute and a total catch, but I can’t date my kids damn art teacher. What if something goes wrong?” Viktor sighed.

“Sure something could go wrong, but what if nothing does? Do you really wanna pass up this chance?”.

“Hell, I’ll date him if you don’t,” Christophe shrugged. His joke was not taken well based on the nasty look that Viktor shot him. The conversation was left at that. One by one, people left the party and soon, only Viktor and Phichit were left.

“Well, I’ve had a wonderful time, but I should probably wake Yuuri up and head home,” Phichit smiled, standing up from the table.

“I could. Well I mean... I could take him home if that’s okay. He deserves a nap after all of his hard work,” Viktor muttered, looking at his clasped hands.

Phichit slightly laughed, “That’s fine. Do you have his address?”.

Viktor shook his head, “It’s okay. He can just direct me there…”. He trailed off, biting his lip, “You won’t tell him what I said, right?”.

“”Of course not. My lips are sealed,” Phichit mimed zipping his lips and tossing the key over his shoulder. Viktor smiled gratefully.

“But I really should get going. I promised my roommate I’d make dinner tonight. Thanks again for having me,” Phichit slipped on his shoes.

“It’s no problem at all. Thank you for helping my son,” Viktor shook his hand. He waved as Phichit’s car pulled away. Now the panic set in. Why did everyone leave? But more importantly, why did they think that it was a good idea to leave him alone with Yuuri? He wrung his hands, looking towards the living room. Was it late enough to ask him to stay for dinner? Was that too weird? He cursed under his breath, trying to think about the situation as though he didn’t like his kid’s art teacher. Like he wasn’t thinking about joining them on the couch and just welcoming him in as part of the family. Like he hadn’t thought about talking to him about life until the sun came up. Like he didn’t imagine what it would be like to have him around. Viktor sighed. He peeked around the corner, careful not to make a peep. Yuri gently moved Yuuri’s skewed glasses to the table and pulled the blanket up over the both of them. Viktor held a hand over his mouth, trying to stifle the quiet gasp. Yuri looked over at him and motioned him to come loser. He padded closer, leaning down to listen to Yuri.

“Can he please stay for dinner?” Yuri whispered, cupping his hands around his mouth.

Viktor nodded, softly ruffling his hair, “Of course, honey. I’ll start the pirozhkis if you’ll wake up Mr. Katsuki,”.

Yuri slightly poked his forehead, “Hey Mr. Katsuki? You should get up now,”.

Yuuri furrowed his brow.

“Come on, Mr. K! Papa’s gonna make us some pirozhkis,”.

Yuuri yawned into the crook of his elbow, rubbing his eyes, “I guess I fell asleep during the movie. Sorry about that kiddo,”. 

“It’s okay, Mr. Katsuki. I fell asleep too. Would you like to stay for dinner? Papa’s making pirozhkis. It’ll take a while though,”.

Yuuri grinned, “Sure thing. I’d love to stay for dinner. Is Phichit still here?”.

Yuri shrugged, standing up, “I dunno. Let’s check?”.

Yuuri nodded, standing up with a big stretch. He almost took a step before realizing the giant blur that everything had become.

“Hey Yurio- where are my glasses?” Yuuri blindly felt around with his hands. Yuri picked the pair of glasses up off of the table and tugged on Yuuri’s arm. 

“Lean down, Mr. K,” Yuri instructed. Doing as he was told, Yuuri bent down to the little kid’s height. He closed his eyes and braced for the worst as he saw his glasses come into view. Yuri carefully put the glasses on Yuuri, moving his bangs out of the way so he could properly position. 

“There you go!” Yuri chirped, skipping off to the kitchen.

Yuuri grinned, what a cute kid. He followed his path to the kitchen and was confronted by a magnificent view. Viktor was up to his elbows in dough, his colorful apron already covered in flour, and despite the mess he made, he was singing to himself. Yuri climbed up onto a stool, snatching some dough from the pile. He softly hummed along with Viktor as he began to make a small sculpture from the flour and milk.

“Excuse me, Viktor?” Yuuri began nervously.

Viktor looked up with a blinding grin. He wiped aside his bangs with the back of his hand, smearing flour all across his forehead.

“Yes, Yuuri?”.

Yuuri’s words caught in his throat. He was caught off guard by his utter perfection.

“Is there anything I could, uh, do to help? I’m not such a bad cook…” Yuuri spoke softly and nervously.

“Oh! I’m so glad you’ve decided to stay for dinner! Of course you can help- there’s a recipe for the filling over by the stove. You could prepare that, if you’d like,”.

Yuuri nodded, looking over the recipe. It seemed simple enough. Just browning the pork and adding onions and spices. Easy peasy. 

“I can definitely do that,” he softly spoke, shoving his sleeves up to his elbows.

“Spasibo!” Viktor smiled.

They went about cooking and talking for the next few hours. The majority of the conversation was between Viktor and Yuri since Yuuri was far too nervous to say a word. In the small space of the kitchen, they kept bumping shoulders, much to their dismay (or to their delight, though neither of them would ever admit it). Standing over the frying oil, Yuuri turned over the pirozhkis. He jerked his hand back as the hot oil popped onto his arm.

“Oh Yuuri, please, you don’t have to do this. I can fry them up,” Viktor reached across to take the tongs from his hand.

“Don’t worry about it,” Yuuri grinned, “It reminds me of cooking at home. I really don’t mind. Besides, I can do this,”. He rolled his sleeves back down to his wrists. Viktor smiled, nudging him with his shoulder. 

“Aw, that’s no fair,”.

“What’s not?”.

“You’re my guest, you shouldn’t be the one cooking for all of us. Besides, you’ve done amazing things for my family. You have to take a break at some point,”.

Yuuri chuckled, “Oh don’t be silly. I offered to cook anyways. Helping Yuri doesn’t really count as work for me anyways. He’s a really great kid, and I don’t mean it in the obligatory way of ‘your child is a pleasure to have in class’. I mean it in the way that helping you had helped me tremendously. I can’t say that I have ever truly thought that I had a purpose until recently. It all just seemed like a lot of facetious meetings before,”.

“Really? I don’t believe that for a second. You’re simply wonderful,”.

Yuuri blushed furiously, gripping the tongs, “I haven’t exactly had anyone to tell me otherwise or make me feel otherwise. But now there’s Yuri... Now there’s you…”.

Viktor sadly smiled, wrapping his arms around Yuuri’s side in an awkward hug. He leaned down to rest his head onto Yuuri’s shoulder.

“We’ll always be here for you. Even in the future. We’ve got your back,”.

“Your biggest fans!” Yuri piped up, thrusting both of his hands in the air.

Yuuri grinned, eyes clouding with happy tears, “Thank you,”. He turned and returned the hug vigorously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's gonna be on the shorter side because I'm working up to some emotional angst (whoops)! Let me know what you think so far!

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you thought in the comments! I'm open to criticism and notes as well! You can message me on Tumblr too: sunprairie.tumblr.com


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